Sherpao terms Political Parties Act a right step

ISLAMABAD - President of his own faction of Pakistan People's Party, Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao, said that extension of Political Parties Act to Tribal Areas was a right step in right direction but government must take steps to remove impediments in its swift implementation in these areas. Talking to TheNation here on Tuesday Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao said that all the major political parties including his party had welcomed the amendment in Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) to allow political parties to stretch their activities to the areas where earlier political activities were banned and the federal government would be dealing with them under the FCR formulated during the colonial era. Criticising the dichotomy on part of the government where on one hand the government had allowed political activities in tribal areas while on the other hand another Ordinance with nomenclature - Action in Aid of Civil Power - was issued by President Asif Ali Zardari to deal with the outlaws in areas falling in the jurisdiction of FATA and PATA wherein the basic civil liberties were denied to the people of these areas, which were even not usurped in the FCR formulated during the Colonial Rule. To a question he said that the governor and political agents in tribal areas were resisting the implementation of Political Parties Act and they had made the procedure for the political parties to work in these areas extremely difficult, as they (political parties) have to clear a number of procedural hiccups including securing prior permission to move into some locality from the Political Agent dealing with that particular area for holding a public rally or some function. Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao suggested that political parties should be given more liberty in conduct of their activities in these areas and Political Agents and law enforcement agencies should be confined to dealing with law and order matters only. Similarly the role of political agents in the management of funds should be restricted and political parties and people of these areas should be involved in identifying the developmental projects in their respective areas keeping in view the demands and needs of the public at large. Sherpao said that the decision to extend Political Parties Act to these areas was widely welcomed but the forces of status quo were coming in its speedy implementation and required resolute commitment on part of government as well as political parties to bring these areas at par with the rest of the developed areas of the country. To a question about the Presidential Ordinance Action in Aid of Civil Power, ostensibly to contain growing wave of terrorism in tribal areas, Sherpao said that there was strong possibility of abuse of the absolute powers given to the administration and law enforcement agencies and demanded of the government to immediately withdraw the blanket powers given to law enforcement agencies and administration dealing with these areas. Terming the Presidential Ordinance as draconian and dogmatic one, Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao said that even such an absolute powers were not given to the administration by the British rulers who wanted to crush the tribesmen . He said President and Prime Minister had assured to bring changes in the ordinance when it was brought before the Parliament but warned the rulers to be quick on rationalizing it otherwise the benefits of extension of Political Parties Act to these areas would also lose its utility.